the musings of a free-spirited young woman dedicated to giving her soul a voice

Thursday, December 11, 2008

The Deep South

There is something to be said for spending time in the Deep South!

I just returned from a trip there and, inclement weather aside (read: tornado warnings/watches, tropical storm level winds, thunder that made the windows of my room shake and torrential rain which seemed to know no end), I found myself enjoying the dark brown earth, reminiscent of Peru, and the area's big sky with its equally dramatic cloud formations.

The area where I was (the south-west corner of Georgia) began to pull at me in an interesting way -- I felt embraced in genuine warmth, almost like I had fallen into my grandmother's arms for a big hug. I found myself thinking, "Oh, so THIS is Southern hospitality!" And, it was every ounce as wonderful as I had imagined.

Of course, while there is this very warm side to the South, I couldn't help but remember its other history while driving past numerous cotton and pecan tree plantations. I know that as a visitor, I cannot pretend to speak about these neighborhoods intimately; however, even as an outsider, I wasn't blind to the scars which linger there.

The Deep South, then, was utterly fascinating. My curiosity to know more about the people, their stories and the land grew exponentially during my time there, and I look forward to the opportunity to return to satiate it.

4 comments:

Hi Kelly, We lived in Georgia when I was young and I have warm memories of it. I would love to go back sometime! Glad you enjoyed the hospitality. Hopefully we are taking a giant leap away from the past.

whereabouts in georgia did you live? it's such a beautiful state and i don't think i can get enough of its red clay earth. i think the south, as well as other parts of the country, are making giant strides away from the past.

One Thing: Be Brave

About Me

I feel very much rooted in the earth, but my friends and family describe my personality as "free spirited." It is good to be free spirited and wholly alive, methinks, swimming in the flow until fingers get pruney and one's soul feels saturated and content. Life is a mystery to be cherished and traveled. I like to eat good food. Soak up Nature's beauty. Laugh in the company of good people. Drum at pickup music sessions. Feel lamb's ear and pine and lavender and sage between my fingers. Count the stars in the sky and watch satellites whiz by in their orbits. I like listening to the old ones and absorbing their stories that always manage to sound fresh. I feel honored when the Muse sits and visits and the dreams that dance me into other realms at night. The synchronicities that lead my way each day, always making me feel like Alice. And the quiet that can be heard in the desert and on the shore and in the trees.

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Quotes To Live By In 2012

“Be wild; that is how to clear the river. The river does not flow if polluted; we manage that. The river does not dry up; we block it. If we want to allow it its freedom, we have to allow our ideational lives to be let loose, to stream, letting anything come, initially censoring nothing. That is creative life. It is made up of divine paradox. To create one must be willing to be stone stupid, to sit upon a throne on top of a jackass and spill rubies from one’s mouth. Then the river will flow, then we can stand in the stream of it raining down.” ~Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Women Who Run with the Wolves

I can tell you that it takes great strength to surrender. You have to know that you are not going to collapse. Instead, you are going to open to a power that you don't even know, and it is going to come to meet you. In the process of healing, this is one of the huge things that I have discovered. People recognized the energy coming to meet them. When they opened to another energy, a love, a divine love, came through to meet them. That is what is known as grace. We all sing about amazing grace. It is a gift.

I think that it comes through the work that we do. For some people, it can come out of the blue, but I know that in my own situation, the grace came through incredible vigilance.